Criminal Justice Colleges in Florida

There are a wide variety of programs available through universities offering criminal justice degrees. Below you will find a listing of schools by city as well as online criminal justice colleges that offer classes throughout Florida.

Florida isn’t just a great place to visit over Spring Break, it’s also a solid choice for attending college year-round. Hundreds of thousands of students go to college at schools in the massive State University System of Florida, and there are also 28 private, independent colleges to choose from. Living in Florida differs depending on what region of the state you choose to live in. The more north you go, the closer the culture shifts to that of the American South, e.g., southern hospitality, a more relaxed pace of life and a lower cost of living. The more south you go, particularly in the Miami metro area, the more you will experience fast-paced city life and a higher cost of living. Florida is known for being hot and humid, as the state has a subtropical climate in the north and a tropical climate in the south. Florida’s unemployment rate as of August 2010 was 11.7 percent, which is high when compared with the rest of the nation.

Florida offers many opportunities for those pursuing careers in criminal justice. Due in great part to its large population, Florida has a high amount of crime, particularly in the state’s major metropolitan areas. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement’s Crime Clock indicates there is one violent crime every 4 minutes and 38 seconds, including 1 murder every 8 hours and 37 minutes. One forcible sex offense occurs every 52 minutes and one robbery occurs every 17 minutes, according to the Crime Clock. However, this doesn’t mean Florida’s residents must cower in fear; the vast majority of crimes here are nonviolent. In 2009, there were 824,559 crimes reported, of which 711,144 were nonviolent, according to the FDLE. This indicates that the vast majority of crimes in Florida are property crimes. The FDLE shows that $1.6 billion worth of property was stolen in 2009, of which about $352 million was recovered.

Whether you’re interested in a degree in corrections, criminology, or any other bachelor’s or master’s justice degree, the search for finding the right criminal justice academy for you begins with requesting a free information packet from schools in your area by following the links below.